2. What does a Power of Attorney do?
3. When should you set up Power of Attorney?
5. How is mental capacity assessed?
6. What happens if you lose mental capacity before appointing Lasting Power of Attorney?
8. What are the benefits of appointing a Power of Attorney?
9. How to raise the topic of Power of Attorney with a loved one
10. How to choose a Power of Attorney
11. Can I appoint more than one Power of Attorney?
12. How to set up Power of Attorney
13. When does Power of Attorney come into effect?
14. How to activate Power of Attorney for health and welfare
Power of Attorney is a legal document that grants power to a named person (known as ‘the attorney’) to make decisions on someone else’s behalf. These powers can be used to make decisions about an elderly relative or other loved one’s health and welfare, property, or financial affairs when they can no longer do this for themselves. Power of Attorney needs to be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) for it to be formally recognised.
A Power of Attorney agreement provides you with the authority to act on behalf of your loved one when they are unable to do so themselves, or have expressed a wish to delegate responsibility. If you are granted Power of Attorney on behalf of a parent, grandparent or someone else close to you, then you could have to make decisions regarding:
The right time to set up Power of Attorney will depend on your unique circumstances. A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) needs to be appointed when the person in question has the mental capacity to appoint a trusted party to make decisions for them in the future.
Some people will choose to appoint a PoA as they age, write a Will, or start to think about what they’d like to happen to their estate when they’re gone. Others will start to think about Power of Attorney after a diagnosis, or if they’re facing regular hospital stays, and need someone else to manage their finances while they are unable to.
If a Power of Attorney isn’t appointed, there’s a risk that you won’t be able to access your loved one’s finances if they lose mental capacity, even if they would want you to. There’s also a risk that doctors will overrule your family’s preferences regarding healthcare, including DNR orders or wishes regarding life support.
Arranging Lasting Power of Attorney while your loved one is fit and able to can save heartache, disagreements, and financial costs in the future. If they make their wishes known while they can, you’ll know that you’re acting in their best interests when the time comes.
As part of the process to set up a Lasting Power of Attorney, the person drawing up the agreement must be able to demonstrate that they have the mental capacity to understand the implications. Your loved one will need to show that they understand what Power of Attorney is, and that they’re aware of exactly what they’re allowing you to make decisions about.
Their mental capacity may be assessed as part of this process to show that they’re in sound mind to appoint someone else to make future decisions for them.
A person’s mental capacity can be assessed by:
Mental capacity is usually assessed by a medical or legal professional, who will interview your loved one to check their understanding of the implications of appointing an LPA. In some cases, cognitive ability tests may be used too. The doctor or other authority will make sure they can clearly and consistently, to help protect anyone who is vulnerable from being exploited.
If someone doesn’t have a Power of Attorney agreement and they lose their mental capacity, the court may appoint ‘a guardian’ to make decisions on their behalf.
This process can be complex and expensive, and can prevent you from accessing your loved one’s estate, or making decisions in line with their best interests. The guardian is unlikely to be someone you know or would have chosen together, and it can lead to conflict if you feel they are making decisions your loved one wouldn’t be happy with, creating extra stress and upset at an already challenging time.
The three most common types of Power of Attorney are Lasting, Enduring, and Ordinary.
Lasting Power of Attorney or LPA grants a person the power to make decisions on someone else’s behalf should they lose their mental capacity.
A Lasting Power of Attorney can be customised with a person’s specific preferences, outlining exactly how they want their estate, finances, and medical needs to be managed in the future.
There are two different types of LPA: one that covers property and financial affairs, and another that covers health and welfare. People can choose to appoint a Power of Attorney for both, or just one area; they’re treated as separate agreements, and each one requires its own terms and carries a separate fee.
A property and financial affairs LPA appoints a trusted person to make decisions on areas like the sale of a property, access to financial assets, receipt of benefits, payment of bills, and more. In a Lasting Power of Attorney agreement, a person can outline their preferences for how each of these factors is managed in the future.
A health and welfare LPA appoints a named person to make decisions about another person’s health, wellbeing and care if they can no longer give medical consent or make informed decisions for themselves. For example, the person instating the LPA could specify their preferences in the event they were on a life support machine, or about the type of care home they’d like to move to one day.
Enduring Power of Attorney agreements have not been used in England and Wales since October 2007. These PoA documents focused on property and financial affairs, and have since been absorbed by LPAs, which cover this as well as health and welfare.
Under an Enduring Power of Attorney, people weren’t required to have their mental capacity assessed, making LPAs a more comprehensive option with enhanced protections. Enduring Power of Attorney is still used in Northern Ireland.
Ordinary Power of Attorney is slightly different to Lasting Power of Attorney, as it will only apply while your loved one still has mental capacity. An Ordinary Power of Attorney agreement ends when the person in question either loses mental capacity or dies.
This type of PoA tends to be used to delegate responsibility temporarily, such as during a planned hospital stay.
Planning for the future by appointing a named Power of Attorney can have many benefits, including:
Stay in control by arranging Power of Attorney in advance. If a guardian has to be appointed on your loved one’s behalf, their preferences may not be followed and their wishes not respected.
Get the peace of mind that you’re acting in your loved one’s best interests by talking with them about their financial wishes and healthcare wishes while they are able to. Drawing up a PoA agreement will give them the peace of mind that their wishes are being respected too, and it will prevent extra stress for everyone at what might be a challenging time.
A Lasting Power of Attorney helps ensure continuity regarding care or the handling of financial assets if your loved one’s mental capacity declines. Having an LPA in place means you can continue with any plans they’ve started in line with their wishes.
Power of Attorney will provide you with clarity regarding your loved one’s specific wishes and preferences. Outlining these in a PoA makes everything clear, and provides a clear legal framework for any decision making.
It can be tricky to know how to bring up the topic of Power of Attorney with a loved one, but it’s an important discussion to have as they get older. Here are some tips for raising the subject:
A Power of Attorney can be anyone you trust, who’s over the age of 18. It could be:
A Power of Attorney should be someone your loved one trusts, who’ll make decisions with their best interests at heart. It could be their spouse, a long-term partner, a child, sibling, or a close, trusted friend.
People can appoint more than one Power of Attorney, granting multiple people the power to make decisions on their behalf; for example, if someone has more than one child, they could grant Power of Attorney to all their children. People sometimes appoint a different PoA to make financial decisions for them, and someone else to look after their health and welfare.
Appointing more than one Power of Attorney means there’s a backup if someone can’t act for your loved one in the future. When drawing up the PoA agreement, they should clearly outline who’s responsible for which decisions to avoid any conflicts.
To set up a Power of Attorney, you’ll need to follow the process outlined below:
There are some differences in setting up PoA across the different parts of the UK. For example, Scotland uses slightly different terms to describe an LPA, issuing Continuing and Welfare Power of Attorney documents instead. Meanwhile, Enduring Power of Attorney is what’s most often used in Northern Ireland, and these agreements must be registered with the High Court.
A Power of Attorney can come into effect at several points:
To activate a Power of Attorney agreement to make decisions regarding your loved one’s health and welfare, a doctor or legal professional will need to declare that they no longer have the mental capacity to make decisions for themselves. The PoA document must then be presented to any relevant authorities to show that you have permission to make decisions on your loved one’s behalf.
The cost to register a Lasting Power of Attorney with the Office of the Public Guardian in the UK is £82. This is for one LPA agreement, so the total cost for registering a property and financial affairs LPA plus a health and welfare LPA is £164.
The cost of registering a PoA is halved for those with a gross annual income of £12,000 or less, while those receiving certain benefits are exempt from the registration fee.
Details correct as of November 2025
No, a solicitor is not legally required to appoint a Lasting Power of Attorney, but you may find it useful to speak to one for legal advice when drawing up the agreement.
Setting up Lasting Power of Attorney can take anywhere from a few days to up to 10 weeks. The process will take longer if there are errors on the form, if mental capacity assessments take longer than expected, or if there are any objections along the way.
A Lasting Power of Attorney agreement will come to an end when the person it applies to dies, unless otherwise specified. In some cases, a Power of Attorney may be revoked, while some agreements will specify a date after which it no longer applies.
In rare cases, a Power of Attorney agreement will need to end if the named person is no longer able to carry out their responsibilities, and no successor is listed. In this event, a court may appoint a guardian or conservator to act in their place.
There are alternatives to setting up a Power of Attorney, including:
Yes, changes can be made to a Power of Attorney agreement, as long as your loved one has the mental capacity to consent to these changes, and can demonstrate their understanding.
To change a Power of Attorney, a written request must be submitted that is signed by all parties and witnessed by an approved party. All relevant parties must be informed of any requested changes, including the Office of the Public Guardian.
Yes, a Power of Attorney agreement can be cancelled at any time, as long as the individual concerned has the mental capacity to understand what they’re requesting. To cancel a Lasting Power of Attorney, a formal revocation document must be submitted, clearly outlining their request. All parties concerned will need to be notified, and evidence of the revocation must be provided to relevant financial institutions and any other parties, such as their doctor or care home.
At Dunham Care Homes, we understand that making decisions on behalf of your loved one can be challenging, even when a Power of Attorney agreement is in place. We’re here to support you in finding the right care for your loved one, with residential care, respite care, nursing care, and dementia care available at our luxury care homes across the UK.
Whether they can communicate their wishes to us themselves or they’re outlined in a Power of Attorney agreement, we make sure we’re aware of every resident’s wishes regarding their health and welfare. Contact us today to ask any questions, or to arrange a visit to one of our care homes.
